DAY 5 (2nd week)

​PREPARE TO LISTEN
Light a candle and pray: The LORD is like the light of morning, like the sun rising on a cloudless morning, gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.
Request for Presence: May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us.
READ Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king’s son.
May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness.
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.
May he live while the sun endures, and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth.
In his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.
Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
Blessed be his glorious name forever; may his glory fill the whole earth.  Amen and Amen.
SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Psalm 72 is a royal psalm and most likely prayed and sung at the coronation of a king.  The primary theme in this psalm is urging the king to practice justice.
REFLECTIVE WORDS
Defending the needs and rights of the poor and oppressed is dear to the heart of God.  Justice for all will be a reality when Christ returns.  In this time of waiting, our present responsibility is practicing justice by attending to the needs of the poor, the oppressed, the despised, the immigrant; defending the rights of the disenfranchised and marginalized.  When we do so, we display Christ to the world.
REFLECTIVE WONDERING
Think about some of the verses as being about you and how you live today.  Rewrite them, using first person pronouns.  Wonder what the world would be like if all followers of Jesus lived this way.
RESPOND TO JESUS IN PRAYER.  
Lord of Justice, May I defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.  May I be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth.’  For the sake of your love for the people you created.  Amen.
BE SILENT AND STILL (for as long as you want).  Simply be in the presence of Jesus, who loves you, regardless.